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Sǔng Yē
Sǔng Yē was born to Xian Wi, her father is not known but is believed to have been a soldier who died before her birth as was commonplace at the time. Xian Wi gave birth to two children, the first being a Xian Wi and the next, Xian Gong who became Sǔng Yē later in life. Sǔng Yē was the first empress to gain control of Chū-Mèe. Sǔng Yē is most notable for being the first empress, beginning the Bing Renpáo or Empress Half of Chū-Mèe's history, for the social reforms she brought in as well as the major impact her coming into power had on Chū-Mèe's government and culture. Sǔng Yē was and remains a controversial figure due to many specifics of her life. Life Birth Sǔng Yē was the second child of Xian Wi. Due to a lack of records from before Sǔng Yē's consort status her father is not known but being a farrmer who died fighting in a border region conflict is the most probable and generally accepted theory as countless men died this way under the aging expansionist Keme Chū (father of the more stable Keme Leng). Sǔng Yē was born and named Xian Gong by her now widow mother, a name which she explicitly states she despises multiple times in her personal writings. When Yē was young the firstborn child Yē died at age two of what is now believed to have been typhoid. Yē was born around the time the firstborn Yē died with Yūng her brother born three years later. According to Yē's own writings, as a child Mother was harsh, regardless of what I wanted for myself, with whom I wished to associate, how I wished to dress, none of it was ever considered by her in a positive manner. I was to take on the farm as her eldest son but Yūng was clearly the superior candidate for the position if not for his skill which is not to be dismissed, for his great passion alone. I was to find a woman whom I loved and present to mother a family, once more Yūng was a much better candidate as he had been courting women since the day he was bestowed speech. It seemed my wants were difficult, my needs a complication, my name an obstacle, my very existence an insult to that woman's sensibilities. Implied in the earlier passage is the larger underlying theme of Yē's life, that of conflict between her existence and her mother's pressure. This conflict came to an apex in Yē's early adolesence. Youth It was in Yē's early adolsence, having come across travelling Nara, most likely Neis, that she made numerous Nara friends. The specifics of the interaction are not recorded but most sources, including Yē's own writings, state that she met the Nara at a crossroads where upon they asked what the little girl's name was', ''to which Yē was her response, probably in memory of her now dead sister. This interaction is rarely excluded from dramatisations of Yē's life as it paved the way for peaceful relations between the Chū-Kata and Nara for a time once Yē came to power and is therefore seen as the beginning of a cultural shift as well as an important moment of growth when Yē begins to develop somewhat free from her mother's grasp. Xian Gong was after a few days, considered legally dead by local authorities which meant that Yē was now more free as she could not be tracked as easily by her mother. The Nara caravan passed through the capital city to trade and it is said that Yē asked about the '''beautiful women people kept talking about and was informed about the consorts, to which she was referring. Only Yē's writings touch on this section but in her own account, she was so enamoured by their beauty and desparate to attain that status, she left her Nara companions and castrated herself in the dead of night, awaiting at the designated point for new consorts until morning. At this time eunuchs were seen to be women due to lacking male genitalia and not being a threat to the emperor's succession, this was also done to place them in a lower rank than men and limit their power, despite Yē's autocastration, she was taken in as a eunuch due to her knowledge of Isetali and her beauty. Adulthood Yē made little progress as the oldest new eunuch due in part to Keme Chū's lack of interest in any affair but war. She did begin to catch the eye of the emperor's son Ling however and over the years the two grew close, eventually Yē told Ling of her desire to be a consort not a eunuch, not only did Ling agree that she was much more suited to the role of consort, he would make her his wife for her beauty was 'more striking than that of any of life's pleasures' ''according to both Yē and Ling's writings. Upon the death of Keme Chū, Ling became the new emperor and took on the name of Keme Leng. True to his word, Leng made Yē one of his many wives. One of Leng's wives gave birth to a daughter, however due to Yē's unofficial status as his favourite wife, she was to raise the child. Keme Leng's Death Soon after the birth of his daughter, the consorts who were becoming ever more irate at Yē's special treatment, especially since some deemed her a man and others not, fights became commonplace and in one of these confrontations numerous consorts died. Due to this instability, Leng attempted to keep the peace but died, the subject of his death is one of great debate as some believe Yē poisoned him, others believe one of the consorts poisoned him, others say he did not die at all but in fact willingly gave his throne to Yē and secretly retired. Ultimately the effect was the same, Yē was now in power at age 27. Founding of Chū/Páo Dynasty Amidst the confusion and with no male heir in sight, Yē took the throne and began her rule, now taking on the surname of Sǔng to remember her now dead husband by way of his middle name (his surname was Keme) and her heir being Leng's and now her daughter Sǔng Ae. Sǔng Yē officially became Sǔng Yē Renpáo Rang Kǎehóng, founding the Sǔng Dynasty in 7218 CT (1218 AR). From this position of power, Yē brought forth numerous changes both legislatively and socially. Upon realising that the Renpáo was her child, Wi began spreading the word that she was entitled to royal status, eventually reaching such a point that she became somewhat famous for her seemingly outrageous claims. Eventually Wi's reputation outgew her sphere of influence and the imperial administration took interest, particularly Yē who decided a meeting was in order to, as she put it '''pay the old woman her dues'. ''The contents of this discussion are of purely baseless speculation, however what is known is that both Yē and her mother entered the room and only Yē left, along with a blood soaked knife and dirtied dress sleeve. The only reference Yē makes to this event in her writings is that '''the fairest of roses contain the sharpest of thorns and yet the loudest dog has the weakest teeth'. ''The previous quote has since earned Yē one of her numerous nicknames, namely Yē Cèn meaning 'Thorned Rose' or 'Sharp Flower'. Death and Legacy Death Yē died at age 49 on the 48th of Yūmeng in 7240 CT (1240 AR) after ruling for 22 years from 7218 CT to 7240 CT (1218 AR to 1240 AR). Her death is shrouded in mystery, most theories are conspiratorial and stem from traditionalists who despise her, these conspiracies include but are not limited to; 1: She was killed by her subordinates 2: One of the men she brought into the palace killed her after 'discovering his true nature' (this hypothesis requires the belief in Yē not remaining chaste after Leng's death) 3: She killed herself 4: Her mother poisoned her in their altercation but it was a slow acting poison 5: Women are not fit to rule and nature will kill any woman who attempts to interrupt the 'natural order' 6: Yē was killed for 'his' alleged crimes against decency and tradition 7: A consort killed her 8: A cabal of consorts came together to kill her 9: She ws being punished by the gods for not mothering her own child 10: Yē was smote for disrespecting tradition and family Amongst others, these are not the most popular theories but they do highlight the broad range of reasons that people believe she died or was killed. most historians agree that Yē died of natural causes. Regardless of how she died, her child was now old enough to begin ruling and so the second Renpáo came into power, continuing what many assumed would die within a generation. Legacy Media Numerous films, books both non-fiction and inspired fiction, television shows and documentaries have been made about Yē's life. The most famous example is ''Yē Cèn, ''a television series dramatisation of Yē's life that is attributed with popularising the 'Roses and Dogs' quote. Political Significance Empress Status Sǔng Dynasty ''Main article; Sǔng Dynasty Social Reforms Cultural Impact Position of Women Impact on Masculinity Páo Sǔng/Pácu Main article; Páo no Sǔng Yē Modern Controversy Traditionalist Modernist Divide Main article; Gender in Chū-Mèe (see also; Gender Essentialism, Masculinity, Femininity, Social Construction of Gender) Dynastic Legitimacy Social Reforms Backlash Current Position of the Renpáo The Masculinity Debate Feminism